One of the most famous trails of the American West was actually blazed by a tiny expedition heading east. Robert Stuart, a young Scottish immigrant, was a junior partner in John Jacob Astor's Pacific Fur Company. In 1810 Stuart helped establish Astoria, the first American trade settlement on the Pacific Coast, and in 1812 he led six men in search of a better route back to St. Louis. He went south along the Rockies until he found South Pass, the only break navigable by wagon, and founded the Oregon Trail. Journalist Laton McCartney is a direct descendant of Stuart, and enriches his account with family history as well as Stuart's copious notes.